I’m working on a project describing a set of walks in the area where I live: roughly 200 of them. Each walk contains about 12 pages – you begin to see my problem.

1. Introductory picture with walk details
2. A map of the walk with cameras acting as a link to photos taken from those positions
3. A walk description with hypertext links to the same set of pictures
4-9 Photos – some with and some without scrollbars

all have navigation icons

Is there any way of using a database structure where each walk is a record thus reducing the pages to a more easily managed number? Or failing that a way of calling pictures/objects from variables linked to the number of the walk.

What you have described is certainly doable with NeoBook ... with or without the use of the NeoBookDB plug-in that is available (at no extra charge) with the NeoBook product.

In addition to the "Intro" page, the most you will need is 12 more pages ... if the layout of the 12 pages is "more or less the same" ... you can have just one page handle the 12 different views ... for the 200 different walks.

You already have an idea of how this may be achieved ... the key is to specify [variables] instead of "hard coded" values for each of the ...

... and then it just becomes a case of loading the variables with the "walk/view" related data (stored in control files) ... and Refresh'ing the objects in question ... helps to plan out everything first.

You might also consider use of Browser Objects to display both text (including links) and images ... these can also be dynamically controlled via [variables].

As far as whether to deploy a database (NeoBookDB) or two go with information in plain text files depends on your personal preference/comfort level. Even if you choose to go with a database, you could elect NOT to keep the images inside (one big) database file ... but as individual files ... 1800 images of (say) 100 KB would amount to 180,000 KB ... or 180 MB ... otherwise, depending on the speed of the users' machines, it might slow down your application ... of course, you could also decide on an interim approach ... i.e. 9 databases (containing one image from each walk) of 20 MB each.

I believe it can be done with v4 ... but v5 has so many more features and facilities ... that your users will be more impressed with an application developed with it.

Despite the fact that I have been using Neobook for some time I have only been scratching the surface of it... I have been looking at upgrading to V5 and will now do so. I'll have a play with it and study your reply but I think I shall have to come back later for some more detailed info